Exodus 28

1 Now let Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, come near from among the children of Israel, so that they may be my priests, even Aaron, and Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar, his sons.

And do thou take to thyself both Aaron thy brother, and his sons, even [them] of the children of Israel; so that Aaron, and Nadab and Abiud, and Eleazar and Ithamar, sons of Aaron, may minister to me.

2 And make holy robes for Aaron your brother, so that he may be clothed with glory and honour.

And thou shalt make holy apparel for Aaron thy brother, for honour and glory.

3 Give orders to all the wise-hearted workmen, whom I have made full of the spirit of wisdom, to make robes for Aaron, so that he may be made holy as my priest.

And speak thou to all those who are wise in understanding, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom and perception; and they shall make the holy apparel of Aaron for the sanctuary, in which [apparel] he shall minister to me as priest.

4 This is what they are to make: a priest's bag, an ephod, and a robe, and a coat of coloured needlework, a head-dress, and a linen band; they are to make holy robes for Aaron your brother and for his sons, so that they may do the work of priests for me.

And these are the garments which they shall make: the breast-plate, and the shoulder-piece, and the full-length robe, and the tunic with a fringe, and the tire, and the girdle; and they shall make holy garments for Aaron and his sons to minister to me as priests.

5 They are to take the gold and blue and purple and red and the best linen,

And they shall take the gold, and the blue, and the purple, and the scarlet, and the fine linen.

6 And make the ephod of gold and blue and purple and red and the best linen, the work of a designer.

And they shall make the shoulder-piece of fine linen spun, the woven work of the embroiderer.

7 It is to have two bands stitched to it at the top of the arms, joining it together.

It shall have two shoulder-pieces joined together, fastened on the two sides.

8 And the beautifully worked band, which goes on it, is to be of the same work and the same material, of gold and blue and purple and red and twisted linen-work.

And the woven work of the shoulder-pieces which is upon it, shall be of one piece according to the work, of pure gold and blue and purple, and spun scarlet and fine twined linen.

9 You are to take two beryl stones, on which the names of the children of Israel are to be cut:

And thou shalt take the two stones, the stones of emerald, and thou shalt grave on them the names of the children of Israel.

10 Six names on the one stone and six on the other, in the order of their birth.

Six names on the first stone, and the other six names on the second stone, according to their births.

11 With the work of a jeweller, like the cutting of a stamp, the names of the children of Israel are to be cut on them, and they are to be fixed in twisted frames of gold.

[It shall be] the work of the stone-engraver's art; as the graving of a seal thou shalt engrave the two stones with the names of the children of Israel.

12 And the two stones are to be placed on the ephod, over the arm-holes, to be stones of memory for the children of Israel: Aaron will have their names on his arms when he goes in before the Lord, to keep the Lord in mind of them.

And thou shalt put the two stones on the shoulders of the shoulder-piece: they are memorial-stones for the children of Israel: and Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel before the Lord on his two shoulders, a memorial for them.

13 And you are to make twisted frames of gold;

And thou shalt make circlets of pure gold;

14 And two chains of the best gold, twisted like cords; and have the chains fixed on to the frames.

and thou shalt make two fringes of pure gold, variegated with flowers wreathen work; and thou shalt put the wreathen fringes on the circlets, fastening them on their shoulder-pieces in front.

15 And make a priest's bag for giving decisions, designed like the ephod, made of gold and blue and purple and red and the best linen.

And thou shalt make the oracle of judgment, the work of the embroiderer: in keeping with the ephod, thou shalt make it of gold, and blue and purple, and spun scarlet, and fine linen spun.

16 It is to be square, folded in two, a hand-stretch long and a hand-stretch wide.

Thou shalt make it square: it shall be double; of a span the length of it, and of a span the breadth.

17 And on it you are to put four lines of jewels; the first line is to be a cornelian, a chrysolite, and an emerald;

And thou shalt interweave with it a texture of four rows of stone; there shall be a row of stones, a sardius, a topaz, and emerald, the first row.

18 The second, a ruby, a sapphire, and an onyx;

And the second row, a carbuncle, a sapphire, and a jasper.

19 The third, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst;

And the third row, a ligure, an agate, an amethyst:

20 The fourth, a topaz, a beryl, and a jasper; they are to be fixed in twisted frames of gold.

and the fourth row, a chrysolite, and a beryl, and an onyx stone, set round with gold, bound together with gold: let them be according to their row.

21 The jewels are to be twelve in number, for the names of the children of Israel; every jewel having the name of one of the twelve tribes cut on it as on a stamp.

And let the stones of the names of the children of Israel be twelve according to their names, engravings as of seals: let them be for the twelve tribes each according to the name.

22 And you are to make two chains of gold, twisted like cords, to be fixed to the priest's bag.

And thou shalt make on the oracle woven fringes, a chain-work of pure gold.

23 And put two gold rings on the two ends of the bag.

And Aaron shall take the names of the children of Israel, on the oracle of judgment on his breast; a memorial before God for him as he goes into the sanctuary.

24 Put the two gold chains on the two rings at the ends of the bag;

And thou shalt put the fringes on the oracle of judgment; thou shalt put the wreaths on both sides of the oracle,

25 Joining the other ends of the chains to the gold frames and putting them on the front of the ephod, at the top of the arms.

and thou shalt put the two circlets on both the shoulders of the ephod in front.

26 Then make two gold rings and put them on the lower ends of the bag, at the edge of it on the inner side nearest to the ephod.

And thou shalt put the Manifestation and the Truth on the oracle of judgment; and it shall be on the breast of Aaron, when he goes into the holy place before the Lord; and Aaron shall bear the judgments of the children of Israel on his breast before the Lord continually.

27 And make two more gold rings and put them on the front of the ephod at the top of the arms, at the join, over the worked band:

And thou shalt make the full-length tunic all of blue.

28 So that the rings on the bag may be fixed to the rings of the ephod by a blue cord and on to the band of the ephod, so that the bag may not come loose from the ephod.

And the opening of it shall be in the middle having a fringe round about the opening, the work of the weaver, woven together in the joining of the same piece that it might not be rent.

29 And so Aaron will have the names of the children of Israel on the priest's bag over his heart whenever he goes into the holy place, to keep the memory of them before the Lord.

And under the fringe of the robe below thou shalt make as it were pomegranates of a flowering pomegranate tree, of blue, and purple, and spun scarlet, and fine linen spun, under the fringe of the robe round about: golden pomegranates of the same shape, and bells round about between these.

30 And in the bag you are to put the Urim and Thummim, so that they may be on Aaron's heart whenever he goes in before the Lord; and Aaron may have the power of making decisions for the children of Israel before the Lord at all times.

A bell by the side of a golden pomegranate, and flower-work on the fringe of the robe round about.

31 The robe which goes with the ephod is to be made all of blue;

And the sound of Aaron shall be audible when he ministers, as he goes into the sanctuary before the Lord, and has he goes out, that he die not.

32 With a hole at the top, in the middle of it; the hole is to be edged with a band to make it strong like the hole in the coat of a fighting-man, so that it may not be broken open.

And thou shalt make a plate [of] pure gold, and thou shalt grave on it [as] the graving of a signet, Holiness of the Lord.

33 And round the skirts of it put fruits in blue and purple and red, with bells of gold between;

And thou shalt put it on the spun blue cloth, and it shall be on the mitre: it shall be in the front of the mitre.

34 A gold bell and a fruit in turn all round the skirts of the robe.

And it shall be on the forehead of Aaron; and Aaron shall bear away the sins of their holy things, all that the children of Israel shall sanctify of every gift of their holy things, and it shall be on the forehead of Aaron continually acceptable for them before the Lord.

35 Aaron is to put it on for his holy work; and the sound of it will be clear, when he goes into the holy place before the Lord, and when he comes out, keeping him safe from death.

And the fringes of the garments [shall be] of fine linen; and thou shalt make a tire of fine linen, and thou shalt make a girdle, the work of the embroiderer.

36 You are to make a plate of the best gold, cutting on it, as on a stamp, these words: HOLY TO THE LORD.

And for the sons of Aaron thou shalt make tunics and girdles, and thou shalt make for them tires for honour and glory.

37 Put a blue cord on it and put it on the front of the twisted head-dress:

And thou shalt put them on Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, and thou shalt anoint them and fill their hands: and thou shalt sanctify them, that they may minister to me in the priest's office.

38 And it will be over Aaron's brow, so that Aaron will be responsible for any error in all the holy offerings made by the children of Israel; it will be on his brow at all times, so that their offerings may be pleasing to the Lord.

And thou shalt make for them linen drawers to cover the nakedness of their flesh; they shall reach from the loins to the thighs.

39 The coat is to be made of the best linen, worked in squares; and you are to make a head-dress of linen, and a linen band worked in needlework.

And Aaron shall have them, and his sons, whenever they enter into the tabernacle of witness, or when they shall advance to the altar of the sanctuary to minister, so they shall not bring sin upon themselves, lest they die: [it is] a perpetual statute for him, and for his seed after him.

40 And for Aaron's sons you are to make coats, and bands, and head-dresses, so that they may be clothed with glory and honour.

41 These you are to put on Aaron, your brother, and on his sons, putting oil on them, separating them and making them holy, to do the work of priests to me.

42 And you are to make them linen trousers, covering their bodies from the middle to the knee;

43 Aaron and his sons are to put these on whenever they go into the Tent of meeting or come near the altar, when they are doing the work of the holy place, so that they may be free from any sin causing death: this is to be an order for him and his seed after him for ever.